In our everlasting quest to find great products, great recipes and more – for our faithful readers – we scour the store shelves, the net, the cookbooks and SYR and I will even even experiment quite a bit. It’s winter, it’s cold outside and we need food that will warm and make us feel good as we come in from the chill. In such cases, soups all hit the spot.

From Pam Reiss” Soup – A Kosher Collection:

Photo by: Michelle Furbacher, page 144

Chicken Gumbo Soup

Serves 12

1 small yellow onion, peeled and finely chopped

1 small green pepper, seeded and finely chopped

1 whole jalapeño, seeded and finely chopped

3 stalks celery, finely chopped

2 cups okra, washed, trimmed and cut into 3-4 pieces

1 1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/4 tsp chilli powder

1-2 cloves garlic, crushed

1/2 cup olive oil.

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 Tbsp tomato paste

1 can diced tomatoes

8 cups stock

1 cup rice

1/2 lb cooked chicken, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

I use fresh okra in this recipe, but if you can’t find it, you can use frozen. Don’t be alarmed about the somewhat slimy juices okra gives off. All the sliminess will disappear as it cooks.

Over medium heat, sauté the onion, pepper, jalapeño, celery, okra, salt pepper, chilli powder and garlic in olive oil for 5 to 7 minutes. The vegetables should wilt but not brown.

Add the flour and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring constantly.

Add the tomato paste, diced tomatoes, and stock. Cover and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for another 15 minutes.

Add the cooked chicken, and simmer until the chicken is heated through and the rice is tender.

I just had two bowls of this soup and found it absolutely delicious and warming. So… enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy!